Their is a lot of uncertainity over who will be the next England Captain after John Terry was sensationally axed from the position last week. Favourites for the job United’s Rio Ferdinand ruled himself out of the running while Man City‘s Joe Hart has down played his chances of replacing Terry.

As things stand, the firm favourite to replace Terry is Liverpool Steven Gerrard. However, with the Reds skipper having not featured in Capello’s line up since early last year will have to battle for it as both Scott Parker and Frank Lampard still in the running for it.

Though Lampard has erased any doubts from Capello’s mind by coming to England’s rescue in the last few games of the Euros qualifiers, Hart still remains Capello’s most logical option.

The 24 year old has however, downplayed his chances of replacing Terry. Insisting that he is not keen on replacing Terry.

“I am flattered to be linked with it but anyone who’s having a consistent run in the England side is being linked with it,” Hart said.

“There are a lot stronger candidates than me. I don’t have a view on who should be captain. As long as I’m playing I don’t care. I have got a really important season with games for Manchester City and hopefully a couple for England coming up. That is all I am concentrating on at the moment.”

Meanwhile, the FA will not sack Capello for comments he made after Terry’s sacking. Capello who made the remarks to Italian television station Rai said he fundamentally disagreed with the FA’s decision.

Apparently these were the comments that rubbed the FA the wrong way;

“I completely disagree with the FA about the John Terry decision and I have told that to the chairman (David Bernstein), I told him that I don’t think someone can be punished until it becomes official. I considered and still consider Terry as the England captain. I think we first should wait for the trial conclusion.”

The Good news is that the FA won’t be sacking Capello which is often the case when players or coaches disagree vehemently and publicly. It will definitely will be interesting to see how the Three Lions approach the championships especially with all the problems they are currently facing.

Photo Credit © Lee Durant

Newcastle United are up to fifth in the Premier League after they beat Blackburn Rovers 2-0, while Arsenal‘s poor run of form continues as they were held 0-0 at Bolton.

Newcastle are now just three points behind Chelsea and a UEFA Champions League place as the Magpies leapfrog both Liverpool and Arsenal with the win.

Newcastle took a 12th-minute lead when Blackburn‘s Scott Dann deflected a 25-yard shot from Ryan Taylor past stranded Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson. Blackburn, who remain in the bottom three, had a gilt-edged chance to equalise before the break, but David Dunn’s penalty was saved by Tim Krul and the Newcastle keeper blocked Gael Givet’s follow-up.

Rovers’ failure to convert several second-half chances was compounded when Gabriel Obertan made it 2-0 to Newcastle in the closing seconds.

At the Reebok Stadium, Arsenal dominated possession, but the closest they came to scoring was two efforts from Robin van Persie that hit the woodwork. The draw dropped Arsenal to seventh in the table, and they are in real danger of not qualifying for the Champions League.

Sunderland meanwhile, have climbed to eighth after their Martin O’Neill-inspired resurgence continued with a 3-0 home win against Norwich City. Fraizer Campbell’s exquisite shot, Stéphane Sessegnon’s delightfully-worked header and Daniel Ayala’s own goal earned O’Neill’s team a sixth victory in nine league games since he succeeded Steve Bruce as manager.

Elsewhere, Djibril Cissé scored 12 minutes into his QPR debut but could not prevent his team from surrendering a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Aston Villa, while Clint Dempsey was on target again as Fulham and West Brom drew 1-1 at Craven Cottage.

Chelsea’s succes in overcoming Queens Park Rangers on Saturday apparently brought some negativity for them as one of their important players, Ramires, was forced to leave the pitch with what looked to be a knee injury.

This situation is apparently worrying for the Blues’ manager, Andre Villas-Boas, who tried to be optimistic with his Brazilian midfielder’s condition, hoping that it won’t be a very serious knee problem for the ex-Benfica man.

Making his own analyzes over Ramires’s situation, Villas-Boas believed that the midfielder might only suffered a medial ligament injury, which would only forced someone out for around few weeks out. However, the tactician admitted that the Brazilian’s actual condition can only be determined after MRI scan, and the hope is obviously that no operation would be needed as it would pretty much make the midfielder absent for months.

“It looks like a medial ligament injury, not so bad in terms of knee injuries. He will have an MRI tomorrow and we will know the full extent. Hopefully he will avoid an operation and be back soon. We could look at four weeks, but we have to know the extent of the injury to give a good assessment,” Villas-Boas stated
Having the tough footballing month soon arriving with Champions League fixture around, Villas-Boas has every right to have concern over Ramires’ condition especially if the Brazilian will be out for months. With the winter market already closing to an end, Chelsea could be forced to make a panic signign should the lose the ex-Benfica man for months since there will be plenty matches which the Blues must play and would need plenty of depth.

Obviously should Ramires is out for a long time, Chelsea’s success in beating QPR 1-0 with Juan Mata’s controversial goal would be less joyful since things could get more difficult for them for the remaining of this season. A little bit comforting sign for Villas-Boas’ team would be the return of Michael Essien with the first team again after his long absence, Essien’s presence could be more essential in the coming weeks especially if he managed to get his performance back on track.

Just as it was expected, Gary Cahill, finally arrived at Chelsea after the London club cashed out an amount around 7 million pound to Bolton Wanderers, so the England international can team up with John Terry at the back.

Revealing his joy after signing for the Blues, Cahill admitted that accepting Andre Villas-Boas’ team’s offer is something that he must passed on especially since the player is eying to improve his quality.

“Chelsea is a massive club, it is a club that looks to win trophies season in season out and it is a big opportunity for me to be a part of that. Opportunities like this you can’t turn down,” Cahill said.

The center back reportedly will be earning around 80,000 pound a week for a possible five years deal, which is obviously major upgrade from what the player was earning at Bolton. Rumors also claimed that at first Cahill was asking a payment around 100,000 pound but after several days of negotiation, both parties finally agreed in the previous amount, which is more than good enough for the England international.

At Chelsea, Cahill will be wearing the number 24 and could also be involved not only in the Champions League but also FA Cup since the defender wasn’t being played in Bolton’s third round match. The player’s addition is being hoped to help strengthen the Blues’ back line, that have been rather shaky at times this season, as they already conceded 25 goals so far, the biggest among current top four teams.

The arrival of Cahill also means he competition to partner John Terry in the center back area will get more interesting as there are also Branislav Ivanovic and David Luiz, who have been regularly tried out along Terry this season. Having already been playing several international matches under Fabio Capello, there will be many expectation rest on the former Aston Villa youth player’s shoulder mainly from Chelsea’s faithful.

photo credit: One Bolton

An interesting statement recently revealed by Milos Krasic’s agent, Dejan Joksimovic, stating that the wantaway Juventus winger is being seriously monitored by Chelsea.

The agent also stated that his client most likely will leave his current club because he hasn’t been featured in the plan of the Turin giant’s new tactician, Antonio Conte.

The lad will leave Juventus, as he hasn’t been relaxed over the past few months due to the various rumours appearing in newspapers. Chelsea? They are interested in the player,” Joksimovic revealed.

Unfortunately, Joksimovic didn’t really confirmed on whether Krasic will be leaving the club this January or next summer and not only that the agent also isn’t giving much more details whether the Blues are making an offer for him. Should the interest are true, than Chelsea could be competing with Manchester United, who are also strongly linked with the Serbian international, which is being considered as future replacement for Ryan Giggs.

Krasic’s exclusion in Juventus’ main squad this summer is actually a big surprise for many people especially Italian football expert as the ex-CSKA Moskow winger was one of the Turin outfit’s best players last season. The Serbian international actually had many interest before being captured by the Bianconeri last season and now apparently he might be regretting his decision in choosing the Italian giant.

Reports from Italy suggested that Juventus’ coach, Conte, didn’t really like Krasic’s playing style and considered him isn’t capable of working on his tactical system as the tactician believes that the Serbian international is not hard working enough. However, that doesn’t necessarily means that the ex-CSKA man is not a quality player, obviously premiership sides such as Chelsea or Man United could really use his skills in penetrating down the flank.

photo credit: Tom Cuppens

Difficult drawing for premiership teams didn’t only happened in the Champions League but also in the second rate European competition, Europa League, where all three English representatives are being paired with tough sides.

Manchester United will be facing fellow Champions outcast, Ajax Amsterdam, while Manchester City are set to battle last season’s champions Fc Porto and Stoke City got pretty much the toughest one with Valencia at sight.

Although being truly disappointed in their failure in the Champions League, Manchester United claimed that they are ready to give a positive attitude in the Europa League and considering their facing Ajax, some serious attitude is obviously necessary. Obviously Sir Alex Ferguson’s side’s focus in the tournament will be getting many questions considering the schedule might be affecting the Red Devils preparation in the league.

‘I have never played them(Ajax) before in competitive football in my managerial career. They are a good team and we are looking forward to it,” Ferguson stated

Meanwhile, Man City will also have the similar issue with United as on whether they would take tie seriously but the club’s football administration officer, Brian Marwood, claimed that the rich club are eager to play Porto. Marwood revealed that the match up against the Portuguese champion is an exciting tie that pretty much on the same level as Champions League tie, so the Eastlands are set to take things seriously.

“It’s amazing, we’ve gone from the hardest group in the Champions League to getting the holders of the Europa League. It’s a big game and we’ll be looking forward to it. Porto are attractive opposition and the current champions. They are games we are looking forward to and are excited about,” Marwood revealed.

Stoke City obviously the one who have the toughest task as Valencia on paper have more quality players compared to Tony Pulis’ side, but considering the Potters’ fine record in the Europa League they can held their head high when the Spaniard arrives. However, obviously it will be a different challenge compared to what they’ve been facing in the Europa League group stage as El Che are an experienced team that continuously participated in the highest European competition.

photo credit: Smabs Sputzer

The draw for the Champions League round of 16 was made today and it threw together some very interesting match-ups.

AC Milan was the one second seed that all the group winners wanted to avoid, and Arsenal were the unlucky ones who got the reigning Serie A champions, who finished second in their section behind Barcelona.

Their will also be another Premier League versus Serie A Matchup as Chelsea will meet Napoli, who knocked out Manchester City in the group stages. Chelsea have not faced Napoli in Europe, but will be wary of a side that knocked out City and boast a potent attacking threat including Edinson Cavani, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Marek Hamsik.

Other highlights include a tie against Bayer Leverkusen for holders Barcelona, while Real Madrid take on CSKA Moscow. 2010 winners Inter Milan take on Marseille, while Manchester United’s conquerors Basel face Bundesliga side Bayern Munich.

Champions League Round of 16 First Leg
14 Feb: Lyon v Apoel – Buy Lyon v Apoel Tickets
21 feb: Napoli v Chelsea – Buy Napoli v Chelsea Tickets
AC Milan v Arsenal – Buy AC Milan v Arsenal Tickets
22 Feb: Basel v Bayern Munich – Buy Basel v Bayern Munich Tickets
14 Feb: Bayer Leverkusen v Barcelona – Buy Bayer Leverkusen v Barcelona Tickets
CSKA Moscow v Real Madrid – Buy CSKA Moscow v Real Madrid Tickets
Zenit St Petersburg v Benfica
22 Feb: Marseille v Inter Milan – Buy Marseille v Inter Tickets

Champions League Round of 16 2nd Leg
Apoel v Lyon
14 March: Chelsea v Napoli – Buy Chelsea v Napoli Tickets
Arsenal v AC Milan – Buy Arsenal v AC Milan Tickets
13 March: Bayern Munich v Basel – Buy Bayern Munich v Basel Tickets
Barcelona v Bayer Leverkusen – Buy Barcelona v Bayer Leverkusen Tickets
14 March: Real Madrid v CSKA Moscow – Buy Real Madrid v CSKA Moscow Tickets
13 March: Inter Milan v Marseille – Buy Inter v Marseille Tickets

Manchester City and Manchester United both face difficult ties in the Europa League following their elimination from the Champions League.

City will face Portuguese Liga joint leaders FC Porto in the Round of 32 while United meet Dutch side Ajax.

Stoke City‘s reward for progressing from the group stage of the Europa League is a tie against Spanish outfit Valencia, who are third in La Liga.

In the Round of 16, Manchester City would not meet neighbours United.

Porto, who won the trophy last year under the guidance of now Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas, host Manchester City in the first leg before a return fixture at Etihad Stadium, while Manchester United will play in the Amsterdam ArenA first.

The games are scheduled for 16 and 23 February, 2012, but may be altered because both Manchester clubs are due to play at home in the second legs.

Round of 32, first legs
Tuesday February 14
Braga v Besiktas – Buy Braga v Besiktas Tickets

Thursday February 16
Porto v Manchester City – Buy Porto v Manchester City Tickets
Ajax v Manchester United – Buy Ajax v Man United Tickets
Lokomotiv Moscow v Athletic Bilbao
Salzburg v Metalist Kharkiv
Stoke v Valencia
Rubin Kazan v Olympiacos
AZ Alkmaar v Anderlecht
Lazio v Atletico Madrid – Buy Lazio v Athletic Madrid Tickets
Steaua Bucharest v FC Twente
Viktoria Plzen v Schalke
Wisla Krakow v Standard Liege
Udinese v PAOK – Buy Udinese v PAOK Tickets
Trabzonspor v PSV Eindhoven
Hannover v Club Brugge
Legia Warsaw v Sporting Lisbon

Round of 32, second legs
Wednesday February 22
Manchester City v Porto – Buy Man City v Porto Tickets

Thursday February 23
Besiktas v Braga
Manchester United v Ajax – Buy Man United v Ajax Tickets
Athletic Bilbao v Lokomotiv Moscow
Metalist Kharkiv v Salzburg
Valencia v Stoke – Buy Valencia v Stoke ickets
Olympiacos v Rubin Kazan
Anderlecht v AZ Alkmaar
Atletico Madrid v Lazio – Buy Atletico Madrid v Lazio Tickets
FC Twente v Steaua Bucharest
Schalke v Viktoria Plzen
Standard Liege v Wisla Krakow
PAOK v Udinese
PSV Eindhoven v Trabzonspor
Club Brugge v Hannover
Sporting Lisbon v Legia Warsaw

EUROPA LEAGUE ROUND OF 16 DRAW
SV Salzburg/Metalist v Rubin K/Olympiakos
Legia W/Sporting v Porto/Man City
Steaua/Twente v Plzen/Schalke
Wisla K/Standard L v Hannover/Club Brugge
Stoke/Valencia v Trabzonspor/PSV
Az Alkmaar/Andrelecht v Udinese/PAOK
Lazio/Atletico M v SC Braga/Besiktas
Ajax/Man Utd v Lokomotiv M/Ahtletic B

Ties scheduled for 8 and 15 March

Disappointing midweek arrived for English teams in their Europa League campaign, Fulham have to forget their European ambition as they’re journey ended on Wednesday after only picking up a point against Odense BK.

Meanwhile, Stoke City suffered their first defeat in the competition but still secure their passage into the next round although that loss relegated the Potters into runners up position behind Besiktas.

Late Equalizer Ended Fulham’s Journey

A dramatic result occurred at Craven Cottage as the home team wasted a two goals lead which eventually also ended their journey in the Europa League as their competitor in their group, Wisla Krakow, picked up a victory against Fc Twente. Fulham pretty much have themselves to blame for their failure considering things were going well until the first half when the London club were leading 2-0 with goals from Clint Dempsey and Kerim Frei.

However, things turned into disaster in the second period especially after Odense pulled a goal back in the 64th minute through Hans Henrik Andreasen. Things obviously become much stressful for the home team players as the tragedy finally arrived in the final minutes of injury time when Djilby Fall netted the equalizer which at the same time ended Fulham’s European experience this season.

Stoke Unbeaten Run in Europe Ended by Besiktas

Having already confirmed their qualification into the next round, Stoke didn’t really take their trip to Turkey in a serious manner as manager Tony Pulis rested nearly all of his main starters. Despite playing with mostly second string line up, the Potters managed to take the lead through Ricardo Fuller in the 29th minute.

However, things turned upside down for the away team after Mathew Upson saw red after challenging Hugo Almeida in the penalty area which also resulted in an equalizer for Besiktas, scored by Manuel Fernandes. The home team made use of their man advantage by scoring two more goals from Mustafa Pektemek and Edu which not only ended Stoke’s unbeaten run in the Europa league but also gives the Turkey’s side a top spot in their group.

photo credit: wonker

Crushing events as Fulham were 9 seconds away from advancing to the Europa League group stages when Djiby Fall stepped up to score with the last kick of the game. The goal tied the game and allowed Wisla Krakow to advance at the expense of Fulham.

It was a cruel blow for a Fulham side that started preseason training in June, so that they could enter this tournament in the very first round. And the evening had started so well.

Fulham went one up in the 27th minute when Frei, after a brilliant run down the left crossed low into the box. Bobby Zamora deftly set it up for Dempsey, who finished the job of burying the ball home from inside the penalty area. Fulham ahead and back in second place!

Four minutes later it was 2-0 as Frei turned in Moussa Dembélé’s centre after another flowing Fulham move. The Cottagers were playing with style and the Fulham fans were dreaming of another European adventure.

The festive atmosphere at Craven Cottage became pretty subdued when Odense pulled a goal back after 64 minutes from an Andreasen free-kick into the bottom corner. Suddenly their was a real tension to Fulham’s play as they retreated into their own half and played not to lose instead of to win.

And it seemed that Fulham had defended well enough until with the last attack of the game, Ruud broke down the right and put in a cross for substitute Fall to head the equaliser, the very last touch of both OB and Fulham’s campaign.

Fulham players are experienced enough that they should have been able to ride out any attacking threat that came from the Danes. And that was something that Martin Jon touched on after the game saying:

Fulham squandered victory three minutes into stoppage time as Fall headed home, resulting in Wisla Krakow finishing second instead.

“We were 2-1 up and then 30 seconds from the end we did not have the cleverness or experience to keep it in their half. It was when [Orlando] Sa had the ball on the break, 25 seconds from the end. Instead of going where the space was and keeping the ball there, he went for goal and then he lost it and they had the break. It is awful to have a break at home with probably 15 seconds to go. It was six seconds before the end and, instead of keeping the ball in their half when we had the last break and going to the corners, he wanted to score. And then you concede a goal from a break. That was disappointing, as was the first goal.”