Best of Europe

Well the the World Cup is about to start and before we all get carried away with the biggest sporting event on the planet I thought I would conclude the European Season. Football in Europe this year was amazing with Inter snatching a historic treble, as a result I thought I'd compile some sort of awards for the best we've seen this European season.

Best Teams:

1- Inter Milan: The obvious choice this season. They have played efficient football and managed a brilliant treble. Winning the Serie A, Coppa Italia and the Champions League. Although they have been a dominant force in Italy for the last 5 years or so, they struggled a bit this season and managed to close on the final day. Their main focus was the Champions League which had eluded them close to half a century. They managed a convincing win against Bayern in the final and were the best team in tournament beating Chelsea, Barca and Bayern to claim it!

2- Bayern Munchen: Missed out on a historic treble this season when they lost the champions league final. Bayern Managed to turn their season around after a slow start, more precisely after thrashing a sorry Juventus side in Turin to qualify to the knock out stage of the Champions League when they seemed dead and buried. They clinched a local double and are by far the best team in Germany and one of the best in Europe at the moment.

3- Fulham: Yes Fulham, the small London club captured the hearts of neutrals all over the world with their impressive run in the Europa Cup. Virtually an unknown quantity in European football, their most delusional fan could not have predicted they make it to the final. They beat cup holders Shakhtar, heavy weights Juventus in an unforgeable encounter and Bundesliga holders Wolfsburg. Their league standing suffered as a result of their impressive run but they still managed to hold on to their Premier League status. Sadly the fairly tail could not be completed as they lost the Europa Cup final 1-2 to Atletico Madrid after extra time.

Player of The Season:

You are probably thinking, Messi, Rooney or Ronaldo....although there is no question about their talents, they are not my picks.

1- Diego Milito: The Argentine striker has finally received his overdue credit. He has been one of Europe's most prolific strikers for sometime now, ever since arriving at Zaragoza from Racing Club. His first chance at a top team, the world has taken notice at last. He was instrumental in Jose Morinho's side. He scored 30 goals in all competitions and was always ever present in the big occasions. With a great eye for goal and a magnificent finish he has scored in every important game this season. The winner on the final day of Serie A against Siena, The winner in the Coppa Italia final against Roma and his brilliant brace against Bayern in the Champions League final. A truly magical season for him and hopefully more to come in the world cup.

2- Arjen Robben: The Dutch winger was deemed surplus to requirements at the Bernabeau having had a reputation of being injury prone and lacking natural fitness. I think Real Madrid should be banging their heads now. Robben reached his true potential this season and has become the world class player he was always meant to be. Bayern helped him stay fit and he repaid them and all football fans the world over with some cracking goals. The goals against Man United and Fiorentina were phenomenal. He helped Bayern to a local double and just missed on the Champions League. Watch out for Holland at the World Cup.

3- Didier Drogba: Struggled last season with injuries under Scolari but has returned to his form this season under Carlo Ancelotti. For me he is the best striker in the world. His combination of brute strength and sublime technical ability is unmatched. He won the Premier League's Top Scorer with 29 goals, edging out Wayne Rooney. He flourished in the new Chelsea system and played well with Anelka, although some people doubted they can play together for some reason? He helped Chelsea to their first ever league and cup double in England. Now if only Ericsson can get the best out of him for Cote D'Ivoire.

Honorable Mention: Wesley Sneijder had an excellent season too and was key in the Treble winning Inter side. Wenger said it best that next season he should go outside Real Madrid and see which players they decide to let go so he can buy them!

Manager of the Season:

There were so many candidates to choose from, so I'm just going to mention them all!

1- Jose Mourinho: Without a doubt, the special one was indeed the best manager in the world this season, leading Inter to an unmatched treble. He destroyed a great Chelsea team at Stamford Bridge and contained a breath taking Barca side at the Nou Camp with 10 men. His post match antics are a bit annoying to the neutral and his opponents a like, he is however, a brilliant tactician that gets the best out of his players. Although he has failed to win the hearts of the Italian Media and the public, his interviews for me were always a joy, just ask the English. Possibly the only man with enough character to deal with Perez and get Madrid back to their winning ways.

- Carlo Ancelotti: Tipped to fail because of his laid back personality, proved how good of a coach he is, given enough resources and support. Leading Chelsea to their first ever double. His team scored an all time record of 103 goals. Apparently pulled off the "very difficult" Anelka/Drogba combo with great ease:P. Berlusconi can you hear me?

- Harry Redknapp: Tottenham and not Man City finished 4th in the Premiere League and reached the Champions League. He was always looked at as a great wheeler and dealer in the transfer market, nothing more. He has proved to be a very good coach especially when it seemed impossible he could make it to 4th spot while having, Arsenal, Chelsea, United and City to play in the final 4 games. Spurs only lost to United and look forward to an exciting season.

- Roy Hodgson: Fulham played a European Cup final, need I say more?

- Louis Van Gaal: Won the Bundesliga and German Cup and lost the Champions League final against a great Inter side.

- Luigi Del Neri: Sampdoria are in the Champions League next season thanks to this man. He has turned them into a force to be reckoned with in Italy. He beat Milan and Roma in the closing stages of Serie A to end their title hopes. He will be coaching Juventus next season.

Honorable Mention: Claudio Ranieri restored Roma to it's winning ways.

Flops of the Season:

1- Real Madrid: A very easy choice given that they spent the budget of a small country on players and finished the season with...yup you guessed it, NOTHING!

2- Juventus: They finished seventh this season and will play in the Europa Cup qualifications believe it or not. Destroyed by Bayern in Turin, out classed by Fulham at Craven Cottage. They just seemed like a team with out purpose. It shows you how much the meddling of owners affects a club. How the mighty have fallen.

3- Liverpool: Tipped to go one better than last season and finally win the Premier League. They finished 7th and will play again in the Europa Cup next season. Poor decisions in the transfer market, injuries to key players and Rafa Benitez contributed to their downfall.

BRING ON THE WORLD CUP!

Sorry Carlo

I cannot say I was not happy to see Ancelotti leave AC Milan at the end of last season. He had been at the San Siro for 8 years. He has won many trophies with Milan. 2 Champions League wins, 1 Coppa Italia, Italian Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup, but with 1 Scudetto win in 8 nine years it was surely time to change.

I had grown tired of his unchanging ways and how it seemed he let his squad turn stagnant. Milan have become very predictable and frankly boring under Carlo. He seemed to be relying too much on Kaka'. Don't get me wrong with a player like Kaka' you would be foolish not have him as the centre of your team but at times during the last couple of years it seemed that we won only if Kaka was playing well! He also had a knack for acquiring over aged players. Favalli, Oddo to name a few. Since Kaka joined Milan, they have failed to acquire a single world class player. Gourcuff the obvious exception but they chased him out of San Siro. I blamed Ancelotti for everything. Things weren't always that way between me and Carlo though. He had the vision to change Pirlo from an attacking midfielder outcast at Inter to the world class player he is today. He also transformed the career of Seedorf who is now forever a legend in the Milan ranks. He made Kaka'. He played him straight from Brazil into the Milan first team. In my eyes he had left the team in shambles. I was wrong.

After seeing Milan this season and how Galliani and Berlusconi are running the club. Most noticeably their transfer policy and how they gave nothing to Leonardo to work with. I started feeling sympathy fro Ancelotti. How in gods name was he able to work with the two of them for so long? It is obvious to me now that there was no money to spend and Carlo had to make due with what was available. It seems to me now that he was actually more of a genius than I had thought. He deserved much more credit than I ever gave him. He was an underachiever in my book for years, but it turns out he is actually a great over achiever. With no money to spend it seemed he was very shrude in acquiring the out of contract and older players. He knew they could give him something for the short term. He kept star players happy for a very long time although it seemed they had a lot to feel disgruntled about. He was able to deal with Berlusconi for 8 years which is a trophy in itself. He was not without fault though. He alienated Gourcuff, one of the most talented young players in a generation. He gave too much control to Galliani in acquiring players, most noticeably Ronaldinho who it seemed Carlo was not convinced with. Regardless of everything I think I owe him an apology, not that he will ever read this:). Carlo's experience in Milan became an invaluable tool at Chelsea.

Ancelotti's appointment as Chelsea manager was met with some skepticism. After all a lot of people saw what I was previously talking about. The fair conclusion was made that being a Champions League ace, he was hired to bring European glory to the blues. He didn't. I recall the amount of abuse that was thrown Carlo's way once beaten by Mourniho's Inter at Stamford Bridge and again after losing at home to City. Ancelotti is a clam and collected man with an abundance of experience when dealing with star studded squads (Milan had a star studded squad once upon a time) and interfering presidents. In a turbulent season filled with ups and downs Carlo Ancelotti proved an invaluable asset. He was able to keep his squad together and lift them up time and time again even when players had more problems off the pitch than on it. He reinvigorated Malouda and turned him into the world beater he originally was tipped to be. Even when missing key players his tactical ability and depth in squad made him cruise by. Make no mistake Chelsea were the best team in the league this season. They did not win the Premier League because other teams were less consistent and going through a rough patch, mainly Manchester United. The Barclay's Premier League has become tougher than ever. As a result the so called big four don't get to enjoy the jolly rides they were accustomed to, just ask Liverpool. Carlo's Chelsea over came this in style. They destroyed their counterparts in the top four club beating Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool home and away. Chelsea won the league by playing record breaking attacking football. 103 goals in 1 season is a marvelous achievement. They put 7 past opposition three times and 8 on the final day of the season to clinch the title. Carlo Ancelotti has proved to be the man for the long haul, unaffected by setbacks through out the season and focused on the end game. Next Saturday Chelsea play Portsmouth in the FA Cup final, were Carlo Ancelotti has a chance to earn them an unprecedented double. Although a Pompey victory would be stuff of legend, I do feel Chelsea will win this. The days of the special one are now but a distant memory.

Champions League Last 16 Thoughts

Yesterday saw the conclusion of one half of the last 16 matches. Man United qualified to the Quarter final with an impressive 7-2 aggregate win over AC Milan. The United faithful are ecstatic and so they should but lets not put things out of proportion. Yes on Wednesday night United out played and out ran Milan but frankly at the end of the day the score line in both legs is very flattering.

At San Siro Milan dominated most of the game and could have been 2 or 3 up before Scholes equalized with a fluke just before half time while Antonini was out injured and unable to prevent the cross coming in (Seriously it seems to me United are the luckiest team in the world). United then capitalized on that stroke of luck and scored two good goals. At the end Milan could have equalized but luck stayed on United's side. At Old Trafford Milan should have scored twice in the first 15minutes, how different of a game it would have been then had AC Milan scored first. Huntelaar missed a howler and frankly this is his last straw with me. He missed a one on one at San Siro and couldn't have had an easier chance last night. I now realize why Real were eager to sell him. He just can't cut it at the top teams who need to win day in and day out. Borriello also looked a bit light weight but he had no help. It seems obvious that a World Class Striker should be the top of their shopping list come the summer. Dzeko is the man I think. Man United got to play against half a defensive line with AC missing Nesta, Antonini and ultimately Zambrotta. The ones that actually played have not started a game once with each other. Also Milan's one super talent was also injured, Pato. In the second half Leonardo went for broke knowing he had to score three goals and Fergies men ripped AC Milan to shreds on the counter. Good win for Manchester but not as good as they will make it out to be. Anyways I think it is beneficial for the Milan hierarchy to wake up and smell the roses. Milan need re-enforcements.

In the other game of the night an arrogant Real Madrid took on a disciplined hard working Lyon side. Sergio Ramos had the audacity to predict a 3-0 win against Lyon before the game. I bet he's eating his shoe now let alone his words. An early goal by Ronaldo seemed to put Real on their way but missing a number of easy chances and overconfidence born out of arrogance made them throw the game away. As long as it was 1-0 Lyon were in it, and they kept grinding until finally they grabbed an equalizer late in the game via 19 year Old Bosnian Pjanic. Real were out. Congratulations are in order for Claude Puel and his men and as for Real, let the circus begin, Barca will win La Liga:P

It might be the first time ever that we have two French Teams in the quarter final of the champions league. Bordeaux play at home holding a commanding 1-0 away win over Olympiacos. Bordeaux are the break out team for me this year. After dispatching Juventus and Bayern with great ease to top their group they continued were they left off. Olympiacos are poor on their travels and a professional and determined Bordeaux side lead by the vibrant Gourcuff (couldn't Milan have used him yesterday?) should make it to the quarter finals with ease. Both French clubs will provide a strong test for any team they come against. I'll be secretly rooting for them:)

Inter and Chelsea is the other crunch game next week. I think both Seville and Barcelona will qualify with ease unless we see another shocker like that of Lyon. Jose Mourinho returns to Stamford Bridge with something he likes best, a lead. A win against Chelsea in Milan is a good result especially with the kind of squad he possess. In my opinion he has one of the best strikers in the world at the moment in Milito. It is very difficult to eclipse Samuel Eto'o but he has done that with ease. Maradona would be crazy not to have him in South Africa. However, make no mistake this is not going to be easy. Ancelotti has been there a number of times before. This is what he does best. He also has a brilliant squad capable of destroying any team. Carlo was the one to over turn a 3-2 defeat at Old Trafford when with Milan to a 3-0 destruction at the San Siro with a full United squad that included both Rooney and Ronaldo. United faithful have a short memory, yes I'm a bit bitter. It will be too close to call but one thing is for sure, it's going to be a cracker.

On Tuesday night Arsenal put on a virtuoso performance. Destroying a good Porto side 5-0 to over turn a 2-1 defeat at the Dragao. This was a classic Wenger display. The slick lethal football that the Frenchman demands of his team every game. It all fell into place beautifully, even with an injured Fabregas. The likes of Nasri and Arshavin stepped up and Porto frankly had no clue what hit them and who was causing the havoc. Nasri scored a Maradonish goal and Bendtner scored a hat rick to redeem himself after a poor showing at the weekend. On their day Arsenal are unstoppable. Wenger has a right to be happy. He wants to play Man Utd or Chelsea in the quarters, is he mad? He is always logical and pointed out that his team can't possibly play any worse than they did during the season against their two rivals....umm OK Arsene. There is reason for concern too as for some parts of the game the Gunner defense seemed a bit uneasy and you could feel that against tougher opposition in might be dangerous.

The last game that night was a cracking one. Fiorentina were robbed from a draw at Bayern when a "blind" linesman allowed a clearly offside Klose goal. He was 3 meters offside at least. 2-1 it finished. The viola started out brightly in Florence by taking a 2-0 lead but the experience and sheer talent in the Bayern Munchen squad proved to be decisive. Van Bommel scored first to make 2-1 then Robben broke the hearts of Firoentina when he scored an unstoppable shot to make it 3-2. Bayern went through on away goals and misses from Gilardinho could have changed the game. However, ultimately the Viola have a right to feel aggrieved and it will leave a sour taste in their mouth having gone out by a clear offside. Technology in football anyone?, hell no I say. It will take half the fun and debates out of the gorgeous game.

The quarter finals draw will be very interesting, we just have to get through next weeks games.

Pirlo Can Go

The AC Milan transfer policy this season has been a joke in my opinion and that is not because they sold Kaka' to Real Madrid. I was never for keeping players in a club against their will although it seems Kaka' might have been pushed out of AC Milan starting with Man City's offer last season. I think at the end of the day he did want to leave and that is why he picked Real whose offer was substantially lower than that of City. Never the less 65m Euros seems to be a great price for Kaka' and Milan would have done well to sell him for that kind of money. Everyone expected the rebuilding to commence immediately especially that the Milan squad is so old that you can actually picture current coach Leonardo on the field with great ease. But no, nothing happened and the Milan administration came out and told us that the bulk of this

some will be to settle debts and no big money transfers are to be expected. They chased Wolfsburg striker Dzeko for a while and ultimately failed to land the prolific goal scorer due to one reason, money! Oh and lets not forget attempting to renegotiate the Aly Cissokho deal with Porto by claiming he had bad teeth! They followed this up with an embarrassing attempt to lure Brazil Striker Luis Fabiano. I'm not a fan of him but a 12.5m Euros offer for Brazil's number one striker is a joke. Again Mr. Galliani and co. told us that funds were tight. One thing crossed my mind at that point...Where did the 15m Euros from the sale of Yoann Gourcuff ever disappear to? Don't let me start on how Milan managed to chase away the super talented Frenchman who was one of the main reasons Bordeaux broke the grip Lyon hand in France and would have been a direct replacement for Kaka'. However I feel in this case the damage already done by Carlo Ancelotti was irreversible. Anyways Milan have managed to acquire around 80m Euros in transfer funds and all we got to show for it was U.S.A Defender Oguchi Onyewu. Don't get me wrong he is a solid addition to the aging back line, but surely we deserve more.

It seems now the Milan Administration is once again going to sell one of it's stars only this time it's Andrea Pirlo. The Brescia born midfielder has been a prominent figure in AC Milan for the last 8 years managing to win all possible domestic honours, two Champions Leagues, one FIFA Club World Cup and off course the World Cup in 2006. For once I happen to agree. There is no doubt regarding the talent of Pirlo but with his high salary, age and the amount of money offered (reported to be around 15m Euros) Milan could be on to something. The talented play makers slow pace and lack of fighting spirit has been ever so evident in preseason friendlies plus rumor has it that he doesn't fit into Leonardo's plans. Add to that the presence of battling midfielders in the squad like Gattuso, Flamini and Ambrosini and it's clear the move makes more sense from Milan's side. From Chelsea's perspective it makes less sense to me, but it's very possible Ancelotti wants to add much needed depth to his squad so he is able to battle on all fronts this season. Galliani this time around has finally informed the Milan faithful that money from Pirlo's sale would go into strengthening the squad and with rumors flying regarding Sneijder, Hernanes, Fabiano and Huntelaar I think its fair to say that Pirlo can go.